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No. 7/7 Cal Hosts No. 3/4 Santa Clara, Visits Saint Mary's

BEARS STAY LOCAL: No. 7/7 Cal (3-1) closes out a five-game homestand against No. 3/4 Santa Clara (2-1), Friday, Sept. 13, at 4:30 p.m. at Edwards Stadium. The Bears finish the weekend Sunday, Sept. 15, with a noon game at Saint Mary's (1-3). Cal hopes to welcome back senior All-American forward Laura Schott against Santa Clara. Schott, who is No. 2 all-time at Cal for points (110) and goals (49), missed the Purdue game due to red card and the Texas and Texas A&M contests with an MCL sprain sustained at a Sept. 4 practice.

BEARS ENJOY HOMECOOKING: Edwards Stadium has provided Cal a home field advantage since it opened for soccer in 1999. After opening 3-1 at home this year, the Bears are 24-10 (.706) at one of college soccer's premier stadiums. In 2000, a Cal women's soccer record 1642 fans attended the Bears' NCAA Second Round game against Santa Clara.

CAL IN SHUTOUT MODE: Cal has posted shutouts in three of its four games this season, which is half of its 2001 total. The Bears are perenially known as one of the better defensive teams in the country, but after a somewhat subpar team 1.13 goals-against average in 2001, Cal coach Kevin Boyd has put a focus on defense this year. Without Laura Schott for the last three games, the shutouts have been even more important.

BEARS EARN SPLIT WITH TEXAS, TEXAS A&M: Cal posted a weekend split against two Top 10 schools - losing Friday to No. 10 Texas, 2-1, and blanking No. 3 Texas A&M, 1-0, Sunday. After a scoreless first half, All-American Kelly Wilson tallied goals in the 53rd and 75th minutes to give Texas a 2-0 lead. Senior midfielder Carly Fuller drilled her second PK of the season in the 86th minute to cut the Cal deficit to one, but the Bears ran out of time. Cal outshot Texas, 10-5, for the game. The Bears took advantage of an Aggies' own goal in the 50th minute and held on for the 1-0 shutout victory. Credit Cal junior midfielder Kassie Doubrava and freshman forward Tracy Hamm for setting up the play that led to the own goal. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Sani Post tallied the shutout in her first career start at Cal.

HAMM NAMED TO SOCCER BUZZ ELITE TEAM OF THE WEEK: After scoring a goal in each of Cal's victories over Big Ten opponents, Ohio State and Purdue, Labor Day Weekend, Tracy Hamm was named to the Soccer Buzz Elite Team of the Week. Hamm is tied for the team lead for points (4) and goals (2) with Carly Fuller.

SCOUTING SANTA CLARA: Santa Clara is 2-1 and ranked No. 3 in the NSCAA poll and No. 4 by Soccer America after posting victories over Notre Dame (4-0) and Clemson (4-2). The Broncos are the defending NCAA champions, with Cal being one of only two teams to defeat SCU last year (2-1 at Santa Clara with the Broncos ranked No. 3 by Soccer America). Kristi Candau leads the Broncos with six points (3G, 0A). Cal leads the all-time series, 12-10-2.

SCOUTING SAINT MARY'S: After posting a 15-3-2 record in 2001 and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Saint Mary's has been slowed by injuries in 2002. The Gaels find themselves at 1-3. Cal leads the all-time series, 10-8-2, but SMC posted two wins over the Bears last year - 1-0 in the regular season and 3-2 in the first round of NCAAs.

DID YOU KNOW?: Cal has built itself into one of the nation's top program over the last several years by utilizing a lot of home-grown talent. This year, 13 players on Cal's 28-player roster hail from the Bay Area. This is more than both of the Bears' weekend opponents - Santa Clara has 10, and Saint Marys' has five. Stanford only boasts three Bay Area products on its roster.